Imagine waking up every day with no memory of anything from the day before, except one crucial twist. While you’ve blanked out on your past, you remember the future. Sounds intense, right? Well, for London Lane, the protagonist of Forgotten, that’s just a normal Tuesday. If you’ve ever lost your car keys for the eighth time this week and are starting to wonder if something’s up with your memory, trust me, London is about to make your struggles feel positively pedestrian.
Here are three reasons why Forgotten deserves a spot on your bookshelf, library wish list, or e-reader.
1. The premise is weirdly relatable
If you’re forgetful, get ready to feel seen. I came up with the idea for the book when my daughters were five months old, and to say I was sleep deprived is the understatement of the century. I constantly forgot things and even though I was essentially a zombie, somehow inspiration struck and my first book baby was born. In Forgotten, London’s life is next-level chaos; every morning at exactly 4:33 a.m., her brain decides that yesterday doesn’t matter anymore, deletes it all, and starts her off with a clean slate. But here’s the kicker—she can “remember” events from her future. Because why not, right?
My version of forgetting involves grocery lists and wondering why I just walked into the kitchen. London’s mental reset takes forgetting to a level so extreme, it’s practically an Olympic sport. While I shovel my feelings into a coffee mug after another “oops-I-forgot-your-birthday” moment, London is out there literally piecing her existence together from Post-it notes and pure willpower. It’s a bizarre concept I could only think of with new baby brain and I hope it hooks you from page one.
2. Luke.
Luke Henry is a boy with charm levels so high, he could probably make a DMV visit feel like a rom-com montage. London and Luke’s budding romance is as sweet as it is complicated because GET THIS! She can’t see him in her future memories. So that means, it’s not worth spending time with him because it’ll never go anywhere, right? Well…
Despite that seemingly huge hurdle for their romantic future, I aimed to make London and Luke’s chemistry electric, so that readers would root for London as she struggles between balancing her reality-bending memory with falling in love.
3. Plot twist ahead
London’s romantic life is like walking a tightrope in clown shoes (fun, awkward, and occasionally disastrous), but things take a deeper turn when her “future flashbacks” grow dark and foreboding. Without dropping spoilers, it’s safe to say her glimpses of what’s to come are not all sunshine and Instagram-worthy moments. The mystery element of the book is one of my favorite parts, as it helps readers learn why London’s memory works the way it does, and if there’s anything she can do about it.
Forgotten combines romance, speculative fiction twists, and a touch of genuine mystery. The next time you wander into your kitchen and wonder, “Why am I here?” I hope you’ll remember that time you read a blog that made you want to read Forgotten by Cat Patrick.